


It Is Not Down In Any Map; True Places Never Are

by IBoatedHere



Category: Turn (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Tattoo Parlor, Fluff, M/M, SailorCaleb!, TattooArtistBen!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-02
Updated: 2016-04-02
Packaged: 2018-05-30 19:09:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6436762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IBoatedHere/pseuds/IBoatedHere
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on this message I sent Deven: </p>
<p>Tattoo parlor AU where Caleb comes into Ben's shop totally hammered and Ben has to be like, no, I can't give you a Fudgie The Whale lower back tattoo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Is Not Down In Any Map; True Places Never Are

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from Moby Dick. Or at least that's what the internet told me because I have not read it.

Caleb wakes up with a severe hangover. 

It’s nothing new for him when he’s just beginning his leave.

Abe is passed out on the bed next to him, drooling into the pillow. 

They both still have their uniforms on, thankfully.

Caleb groans and rolls away from the light that's coming through the window. They forgot to close the blinds last night before they collapsed.

“Abe,” he shoves at his back and Abe curls around his pillow. “What the hell happened last night?”

Finally Abe cracks open one eye. “Why are you in my bed?” 

“You're in my bed.” 

“You have your clothes on, right?”

“Don't be stupid. Of course I do.”

“Then shut up and let me go back to sleep. My head is killing me and I don't know if I'm hungry or if I'm going to throw up.”

“But do you remember anything from last night?”

Abe raises his middle finger at him. 

Caleb drags his hand across his face and notices the writing on his hand. 

Black marker. Permanent. Not smudged at all. 

_Please call when you wake up. -Ben_ Followed by a phone number. 

“Who the hell is Ben? What did I do with him and why does he want me to call him? What did I do last night?”

“Caleb, hey,” Abe lifts his head off the pillow. “I'm only going to say this one more time.” He flips him off with both hands. 

“Alright, alright,” Caleb mumbles as he stands. It's a chore. He's dizzy and thirsty and the shower he takes does next to nothing to make him feel better. 

He calls the number in the bathroom so he doesn't disturb Abe. 

On the fourth ring someone picks up and says “Rebel Tattoos, what can I do for you?”

Caleb answers back with “oh shit” and frantically spins in the mirror trying to see if there's ink on him anywhere. 

“I'm sorry, do you have the wrong number?”

“No,” he can't see anything on him. “I don't know. Is Ben there?”

“This is him.” 

“Okay, I think I met you last night. You wrote on my hand for me to call you but I have no context for it and I'm kind of concerned that I have a drunk tattoo on me.” 

There's a long pause. 

“Hello?”

“Yeah, sorry, it's Caleb right?”

“Yes, God, you remember me?”

“You're kind of hard to forget. How are you feeling? Is your friend still alive?”

Caleb sits down on the counter top. “Barely. I actually made it out of bed so I think I'm doing better than him. He's always had a problem holding his liquor.”

“And you were so elegant last night.” 

“I'm guessing you're being sarcastic but I don't know because I seriously don't remember anything.”

“You came in begging for a tattoo,” he pauses when he hears Caleb suck in a sharp breath. “I didn't give you one, don't worry. You were way too drunk for that. But you did make me promise to book you for an appointment at 2 today.”

“That's why you wanted me to call you.”

“To remind or confirm or cancel.”

“What tattoo did I want?” 

“You were going back and forth. It's kind of hard to explain. It would be easier for me to show you if you want to come in. Also I really want to see your face when you see what you wanted. You already have the appointment and you don't have to get it done.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“Really?”

“Abe's gonna be out for awhile and I don't have any other plans.”

Ben rattles off the address. It's only a few blocks away. 

*****

The man behind the counter looks up when the door opens. 

He's hot. 

Honey colored hair pulled off his face and blue, blue, eyes. The black t-shirt he's wearing reveals the edge of his collar bone. 

Caleb is screwed. 

“Please tell me you're Ben.”

He continues to stare blankly at him until Caleb whines and the guy smirks. “Hey, Sailor.”

“Oh thank god. I'm Caleb.”

“Yeah, I know.” 

“How bad was I last night?”

“I've seen worse but you were definitely an experience. Do you remember any of it?”

“Nope. If it wasn't for this,” he holds up his hand, “I would never have known I was even here.”

“Well it's a good thing I wrote it down then.” 

“How obnoxious was I?”

“You were insistent that I give you a tattoo. You said you'd pay triple and your friend said he'd throw some money in there too.”

“What did I say I wanted?”

“Well, you said you wanted the whale from Moby Dick on your lower back- I think you just liked saying the word dick- but I started to sketch out a few ideas anyways because it could be cool. I would try to talk you out of the placement of it but,” he ducks beneath the counter and pulls out some paper. “But you kept stopping me and telling me you wanted it to look more like Fudgie the Whale and I didn’t know what you meant by that. Your friend wanted you to go full Fudgie and you thought that was a great idea.”

“Oh my god.”

“That’s when I figured I should get you and your friend in a cab on your way back to your hotel.”

“Did you pay for our cab?”

“Yes. But that’s only because I couldn’t find your wallet.”

“Oh shit.”

“But that’s because you took your wallet out of your pocket and left it under the chair. I don’t know why you were down there, it was hard to keep an eye on your and sketch a Moby Dick-Fudgie the Whale hybrid at the same time.”

“I'm so sorry.”

“Don't worry about it. You're my new favorite Fleet Week story,” he says as he hands his wallet over the counter to him and Caleb takes a good look at the sketches.

There's a few that stand out before they start to look like an ice cream cake but there's one that he falls in love with. 

Black and white and simple it's a drawing of the whale, scarred and breaching over a small boat. It looks just like it was ripped from the pages of the book itself. 

“I still want it.”

“Umm,” Ben looks down at the sketches then back up at him.

“The good one, not the Fudgie the Whale ones, although, this one is kind of cute,” he picks it up considers it, briefly. “No, not this one, I want this one,” he picks up the first sketch. “This one is amazing.”

He swears Ben blushes. 

“You're sure?” 

“Yeah. It's about time I get one, right? I am a sailor.”

“But you're sure this is the one you want? You were very drunk last night.”

“Drunk me is just like sober me but louder and more honest.” 

“That is...interesting.”

“What's that mean?” 

“You said somethings to me last night. Interesting things.”

“What kind of things?”

“So where do you want this?” He swiftly changes the subject. “Still keeping to the lower back?” Ben looks mildly horrified at the thought. 

“No, no, God no. But, my shoulder maybe.”

“Why don't you look at some of my other work, see if you like my style.”

“I like this.”

“It wouldn't hurt for you to take a look and you can look at my colleagues work too,” he pulls out two binders and sets them in front of Caleb. “Just look through them. Humor me.”  
He leaves him to pick up the ringing phone and Caleb starts to look through the binders.

Ben's are all amazing with clean and neat lines. Minimalist. The other book is more abstract with colors that look like watercolors against skin. 

“So what do you think?” 

“This one is yours, right?” He asks, lifting the edge of the binder and Ben nods. “Then I want you.” Ben's eyebrows shoot up. “I want you to do me,” Caleb amends then blushes when Ben laughs. “I want you to do my tattoo, Jesus Christ maybe I'm still a little drunk.”

“Whatever you say drunk is the same as what you think sober.”

“I wish I didn't tell you that.”

Ben smiles wide. 

“So can you do it?”

“I don't know if I should give you this today. There's still alcohol in your system-” 

“I'm not drunk. I chugged a bunch of coffee before I got here.”

Ben laughs, “that's even worse. It thins your blood out so you'll bleed easier.” 

“But I want the tattoo.” 

“Have you eaten anything today?”

He shakes his head and Ben rolls his eyes.

“That’s another reason why I shouldn’t give you one. This is like, tattoo 101. Why don’t you come back tomorrow? You can sleep on it and make sure you really want it then come back at the same time and we can do it. If you change your mind you can call and cancel- no worries. But if you decide to go through with it don’t get all hopped up on coffee, eat something, and bring headphones or your friend with you. This is going to take a while.” 

“Okay, I'll talk him into coming with me and I'll be back tomorrow. Early without any coffee in me so I'll probably be cranky but I'll be ready.”

“Caleb, seriously, if you don't want to go through with it you don't have to.”

“I'll be back.” 

******

“Wait, you’re actually going through with it?”

“I thought you didn’t remember?”

“Bits and pieces are coming back to me. How hot was this guy again?”

“Extremely.”

“You can't let someone permanently disfigure your body just because they're attractive.”

“It has nothing to do with that. You know my I uncle used to read Moby Dick to me all the time. As soon as he'd finish it I made him start it all over again. He was begging for Harry Potter near the end.”

“Pretty heavy for a kid.”

“I could handle it.”

“You and I had a very different upbringing.”

“What did your dad read you?”

“Nothing mostly.”

Caleb frowns and Abe shakes his head. “It's alright though, I think I turned out okay.”

Caleb watches him add more sugar to his coffee and thinks that's mostly true. 

“Anyways, Ben said I should bring you because it's going to take a while.”

“No way. We're only on land for a week and I'm not spending a precious second watching you flirt with a guy that's going to scar your body for life.”

“What else do you have to do?”

“I got my own guy to flirt with,” Abe nods towards the front desk. 

“The concierge?”

“His name is Rob.”

“He doesn't like you.”

“Sure he does, he just doesn't know it yet.” 

***** 

Ben grins when he sees Caleb walk in. 

“You're really going through with it?”

“You sound exactly like my friend.”

“He couldn't make it?”

“Nah. He's making the most of his time off. Zeroed in on some poor guy that works at the hotel that's pretending he can't stand him so.”

“Well best of luck to both of them. You still good with that design?”

“I like it more now than I did yesterday.”

“Okay,” Ben takes the sketch then nods towards his station. Across the shop Ben's coworker, Anna, a pretty brunette with full sleeves of flower tattoos is working on a foot tattoo for a young blonde who keeps flinching at the pain. “This is where I'll be working on you. I have to make a stencil of this so bathroom is down the hall, stretch, grab a bottle of water out of the fridge. You'll be sitting for a bit. I'll be right back.”

Caleb grabs the water and looks at the framed tattoos on the wall while Ben is gone. By the time he gets back the blonde is crying and Caleb's face drops into a hard frown. 

“You having doubts?”

“Nope. I can handle it.” 

“It's really not that bad, but everyone has a different tolerance towards pain, you can take your shirt of,” Ben says and Caleb doesn't know why he suddenly feels self conscious. Ben does this for a living. He's seen it all before. “It hurts more over thin skin,” he presses the stencil to his skin and positions it the way he thinks will look the best then makes Caleb look for himself. “If you want me to move it at all let me know.”

“It looks good.”

“Don't yes man me.”

“I'm not. Let's do this.”

Ben tries to hide his smile. “Why don't you sit down and take a couple deep breaths. I think you're a little nervous.”

“I'm not,” Caleb is insistent but when the girl yelps and Anna sets her jaw and Caleb bites his lip. “I'm fine.”

“You can still back out. No judgement. This is a lifelong commitment and hurts like hell to get it removed. It's so much worse than getting it on. If you have any doubt-” 

“I don't,” Caleb interrupts. “I want this. Let's do it.”

“Alright, okay, sit down and settle in. It's a little like a scratch, more annoying than painful, until we get to here,” he puts two fingers over his shoulder blade, “then it's going to be painful. Do you want me to warn you when it happens or just go for it.”

“Go for it.”

The first touch stings but he tries not to flinch too bad. 

“How ya doing?”

“Is it too late to back out?”

Ben sighs and removes the needle.

“I'm kidding, keep going.”

“That's really not funny.”

“It's how I handle uncomfortable situations.” 

“How is it that you're a sailor and this is your first tattoo?”

“We’re not all that stereotype of anchor tattoos and hearts with mom written in the middle.”

Ben lifts the needle and laughs. “That's the picture I always have in my head. Like, sailors from the forties.”

“That does it for you?” 

“Kind of, yeah. Why this one? Why did drunk you decide this is what sober you wanted?”

“My uncle used to read this to me when I was little. My parents weren't there so he took over.”

“They work a lot.”

“Mom died when I was a baby and dad split shortly after.” 

Ben doesn't say anything but he can tell he's feeling awkward. “It's okay. I only know them through photos and you can't miss someone you never even knew, ya know. It was fine with me and my uncle. He passed about two years ago.”

“Shit.”

“This I'll be a good way to remember him.”

“Now the pressure's really on me.”

“That's not funny. What about you? You don't look like your stereotypical tattoo artist.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means cut your hair and put you in a suit and you look exactly like a junior senator with a pretty wife and 2.5 kids or like a high school English teacher I would've had some serious dreams about. Do you even have any tattoos. I don't see any on you.”

Ben leans in very closely and whispers in his ear, “maybe you just don't know where to look,” and it takes Caleb a few moments to recover from that. 

“For real,” he says, finally, “how'd you get into this out of all your options.” 

“You think I was drowning in options?”

“Yes. Now what's your deal?”

“Well, I was going to go into politics,” 

“I knew it.”

“But I don't know, it just didn't fit. I felt like I was wasting my time. I couldn't see anything getting done and I knew I could draw okay so I took a few art classes and got job here and that's that.” 

“You're happy with your decision?”

“I get to sleep until 9 everyday, I like everyone I work with and all the customers are really cool. I think it's a solid decision. I love my job.” 

******

Ben tells him when he's about to go over his shoulder blade and Caleb's thankful he did. Caleb has time to ball his hands into fists and set his jaw and Ben tells him a story from college until he's moved on.

*****

It takes Ben five hours to finish the design. Halfway through they stop and order pizza. Ben tells him he can't put his shirt yet so he sits across from him in the break room shaking his head. 

“I can't believe I'm sitting here half naked eating pizza.” 

“I told you I loved my job.” 

*****

“Okay,” Ben shuts off the tattoo gun. “That's it. Are you ready to see it?”

Caleb slowly stands. His neck is a little sore but he but he cracks it and looks in the mirror that Ben's holding. 

“This is amazing.”

“You really like it?”

“Yes, you're….why do I feel like I could cry right now? Is that normal?”

“It happens especially if the piece really means something to them.”

Caleb wipes at the tears forming in the corner of his eye. “This does. I didn't know how much,” he turns to Ben then gestures between them. “Can I?”

“Yeah, sure,” Ben says as he wraps his arms carefully around him. Caleb squeezes him tight and tucks his face into the side of his neck. Ben pats his back until Caleb lets him go. “I just have to wrap it up then I can check you out and you're ready to go.” 

Caleb can’t look away from the mirror. 

“Okay so this is important,” Ben tells him as he covers it in plastic wrap, “keep this on for at least two hours, ideally three. Then wash it with antibacterial soap, gently, don't use a cloth or anything, nothing that'll exfoliate it. Only touch it with clean hands. No matter what you do don't scratch it. It's probably going to itch but don't touch it. It'll scar. Don't soak it. Showers are fine. Keep it dry and when it's healed you need sunscreen on it or else it'll fade. If you keep it well maintained you probably won't have to do any touch ups. Everything I just told you is in these pamphlets, I know it's a lot to remember but it's all important things. If you have any questions you can call me. Let me get you my number.”

“I already have your number, remember?” Caleb holds up his hand. The writing is a little faded but still readable. 

“Yeah,” Ben looks down at the pen in his hand nervously. “I was going to give you my personal number in case you needed something after hours or if you wanted to...I don't know.”  
Caleb leans his elbows on the desk and watches Ben struggle for words. 

“If you wanted to call me or text me for anything at anytime.”

“Anything?”

“Yeah, anything.” 

“I'll keep that in mind.”

*****

Caleb calls him two days later and doesn't bother to introduce himself before he says “Hey, it's itching like crazy.”

“God, I hope this is Caleb and I hope you're talking about the tattoo.”

“Yes it is and I'm going to claw the ink out.”

“Don't do that. You're going to mess the design up or it'll get infected. If you have to touch it just pat it gently. Make sure you do it over your shirt. Don't touch it directly too much. That usually satisfies it a little.”

“It's not working.”

“You can try taking a shower but make it a short one.”

Caleb whines. 

“This was all in the paperwork I gave you and I explained it to you in person. You're not going no to get a ton of sympathy from me.”

Caleb whines louder. 

“Oh my god, you made it through the whole process only flinching a little but you can't take a tiny itch.”

“It is not tiny. I'm going crazy.”

“Go for a walk or something. Take your mind off of it.”

“It's fifteen degrees outside I'm not going to take an aimless walk. You gotta help me.”

“I’m still at work. Meet me here and I'll take a look at it to make sure nothing is really wrong then we can go to dinner, I'll distract you from it for awhile.”

“How distracting can you be because I'm ready to set myself on fire.”

He can practically hear Ben roll his eyes as he says “see you soon.” 

*****

“I can't believe how much this itches,” Caleb says already unzipping his jacket as he walks through the door. 

“I can't believe I had to give you my number _and_ ask you out. Do I have to do everything? Come here.”

Caleb closes the distance and Ben pulls up on the hem of his shirt. He has him shirtless and turned around before Caleb even realizes what's happening. 

“You like to move fast.”

“I'm tired of your complaining,” he murmurs and Caleb's can feels his fingers right around the edge of the tattoo. He rolls his shoulder to try to get his hands to touch the ink. 

“Knock it off, I'm not scratching it for you. You're keeping it clean and dry, right?”

“I'm doing everything you told me to.”

“It looks fine. It's healing just like it's supposed to, itching is part of that.”

“You can't do anything for me?”

Ben's quiet for a moment before he covers most of the tattoo with his hand and lightly presses down. It's one of the best things Caleb has ever felt. All too quickly the pressure is off and Ben's grabbing a bottle beneath the cabinet. 

He smooths on just enough to make Caleb's knees go weak. 

He braces himself against the counter and Ben laughs when he throws his head back and moans. 

“Oh my god, why didn't you tell me to do this before?”

“Because you would have slathered it on and you can’t do that.”

“I wouldn't have. I would've been good.”

“Nope. I know how it feels. I know how tempting it is.”

“Right because you have these secret hidden tattoo that I'm beginning to think don't actually exist.”

“They exist, I promise.”

“Let me see them.”

“Excuse me?” He holds Caleb's shirt out to him and Caleb slips it over his head. 

“C’mon, I showed you mine.”

“I created yours. Doesn't count.”

“You know what I mean,” Caleb says then boldly works his hands beneath the fabric of Ben's shirt. 

“You're telling me I have to give you my number, ask you out, fix your itching, and take all my clothes off.”

“Whoa, I was just talking about your shirt but if you want to take it all off I'm not about to stop you.”

Ben leans in so close, their lips almost brushing and Caleb's faced with a new itch he wants to scratch. 

“You really want to see them?”

Caleb swallows and takes a deep breath as he has trouble deciding if he should look Ben in the eyes or stare at his lips. “Yes.”

“Well,”Ben says, voice deep and strong and Caleb can't stop his hands from curling around Ben's waist beneath his shirt. Ben leans in just a little bit more and Caleb can taste the kiss before it happens. 

Except it doesn't happen. 

Ben pulls away and steps out of his grasp. He winks and says “then we'll have to see how dinner goes.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Come on, I'm starving.”

“Yeah, me too but not for food.”

Ben laughs at him and grabs his jacket off the back of his chair. 

“Come on, just a peak.”

“I’m so hungry.”

“A hint.”

“I’ve been working all day.”

“You can’t tease me like that.”

“Do you want Italian or Thai or what about sushi?”

“I can’t believe I agreed to go out with you,” Caleb tells him as Ben flips the lights off and locks the door behind him. 

Ben stops him from walking further away from him by grabbing his hand, pulling him back, and pressing a kiss to his lips. 

It’s chaste. There and gone but a promise of what’s to come. 

“Okay,” Caleb says as he doesn't let Ben’s hand go. “I believe it.”


End file.
